Technology Standards and Open Source

Overview

Schwabe is at the forefront of creating and counseling technology standards-setting groups, open source software projects, and trade organizations throughout the world.

Aligning with the goals of a tech-industry initiative

Rapid developments in mobile, wireless, automotive, video, Internet of Things, data centers, ‎networking, security and virtual reality (as well as many other areas) demand ever-increasing levels of ‎interoperability. This need for interoperability drives the creation of new standards-setting groups, open source software projects, and trade organizations. Our lawyers play a leading role in helping these emerging bodies navigate the complex formation, governance, antitrust, tax and IP issues that surround their creation and success. We have acted as general counsel to many of the high-tech industry’s largest and most respected standards-setting groups and open source projects.

Our lawyers take the time to learn and understand the reasons behind each industry initiative and its underlying technology, in order to provide tailored, effective counsel. We assist in:

Determining the form of relationship between the organizers

Choosing the appropriate form of entity and/or governance structure

Seeking state and federal tax-exempt status

Establishing the rights and obligations of members and contributors

Developing policies for the contribution and licensing of intellectual property

Building consensus among competitors

We believe that practical solutions and consensus building are the cornerstones of success for standards-setting groups and open source software projects. Working closely with the legal teams from promoting companies, we help groups establish charters, resolve disagreements and maintain their governance. We shepherd clients through:

Specification adoption, publication and revision

Accepting contributions

Forming liaison and collaborative relationships with other organizations and projects

Creating and supporting community labs and open initiatives

Establishing certification and testing programs

Selecting, registering and enforcing certification marks on a worldwide basis

Marketing and event management

Intellectual property licensing, including free and open source software licensing

Counsel to leading businesses

We frequently serve as special counsel for major industry leaders and Fortune 500 companies as they evaluate and join or contribute to standards-setting organizations, open source software projects, contractual industry initiatives, and collaborative research projects with major educational and research institutions.

Supporting the life cycle of technology standards and open source software

We provide legal services throughout the life cycle of standards-setting organizations and open source software projects, beginning with formation and setting up governance structures, then developing intellectual property rights policies and/or selecting an appropriate open source license, updating these documents during the organization or project’s growth, mergers with strategically aligned entities, and finally, dissolution.

Experience

Provided general counseling services for:

Car Connectivity Consortium

Digital Living Network Alliance (formerly known as the Digital Home Working Group)

Entertainment ID Registry

GENIVI Alliance

The Green Grid Association

HDBaseT Alliance

HDMI Forum

HomeGrid Forum

Kantara Initiative, Inc.

Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF)

Mopria Alliance

NBASE_T Alliance

OCP-IP

ONAMI

Open Data Center Alliance

Open Connectivity Foundation, Inc.

Open Networking Foundation

OpenPOWER Foundation, Inc.

PCI-SIG

RVU Alliance

Serial ATA International Organization

Acted as special counsel to industry leaders regarding participation in: